By Ingrid Schmoutziguer, communications
Primary
Annabelle Lilly; Brighton (UK): 'I am the Rainbow Classroom Teacher. Over the last two years I worked at ISH in The Hague as a Learning Support Teacher. My career has been in both Learning Support and ENAL teaching, I have been doing this for about 20 years. I love the outdoors, walking, yoga, cycling, and creating vision boards for positivity. In my spare time I am a music photographer for live bands and I also love to sing and play the guitar'.
Kate Hellberg; USA: 'I am going to be assisting students in the Primary Library while ms Gemma Mason is temporarily on maternity leave. I am from the United States of America, and I moved to the Netherlands during the Covid pandemic 4 years ago. I enjoyed teaching Kindergarten for three years and working with students one-on-one for 10 years in my home as a tutor. I have two adult children living in the US and one son who is in grade 9 at ISU. I love to travel with my family and friends and as we are living in such a centrally located country that it is very easy to do so often. I also love to read, and I especially have a passion for sharing the joy of reading with others'.
Laura Smit; South Africa: 'I teach and assist in KG 1 Orange. I have 6 years of classroom teaching experience at all school levels in South Africa, from kindergarten to matric (12th grade), and across multiple subjects. I have also worked individually with grade 11 and matric students for over 15 years on learning to manage their workload and deadlines and exploring career paths to pursue after school. My passions and interests include music, art, handwork, animals, travel, the outdoors, sport, reading, cooking, and baking'.
Lilia Odett Gomez VillarrealI; Mexico: 'I have been a teacher and coordinator for more than 20 years, but the grade I love teaching the most is KINDERGARTEN. I am currently a KG2 White ClassroomTeacher. My passion is music and eating tacos'.
Lorenzo Sánchez Pérez; Madrid (Spain): 'I am a professional classical violinist and a primary music teacher. The last 7 years, I have been working in Scotland for a wonderful charity organisation called Sistema Scotland, allowing me to teach general musicianship, violin and viola in several primary schools, and leading orchestras for young people and adults empowering communities across Scotland. In my free time, I like to work out, learn new music instruments and spend time with my friends and family (including my lovely cat, Aika!)'.
Orit Lahav; Israel: 'I am an English Language Acquisition and Multilingualism teacher. This is my third year of teaching and my first time working in primary! I love to read, sing and watch some good theatre'.
Secondary
Alexander van Zijll Langhout; the Netherlands: 'I teach Integrated Sciences in MYP. I have previously worked at ISU, but took a year off to travel the world! My biggest passion is helping students grow as unique individuals. This means encouraging all of their interests, whether that be in science or any other field, and respecting their different learning styles. In my free time I can also be found exploring all my constantly shifting interests ranging from sports and exercise to playing guitar all the way to creative writing'.
Britt Cherry—Draaijer, the Netherlands: 'I am a school psychologist/inclusion coach. I was born and raised in the Netherlands but moved to California in 2018. After spending six years there and working as a school psychologist in all grade levels, my family decided to move back to the Netherlands. I became a school psychologist because I believe that learning should be accessible to everyone and anyone and be an overall positive experience regardless of your abilities. During my free time, I enjoy hiking, watching a good series, and spending time with my son and husband'.
Irene Dekker; the Netherlands: 'After obtaining my Bachelor of Education diploma, I worked several years as a Primary teacher inRotterdam before becoming a Secondary class teacher in a school for children with special educational needs. At this time, I met my husband and right after tying the knot we relocated to Shanghai where I started working at a Dutch Language and Culture school. After a few years we continued our journey, first to the UK, then back to the Netherlands, where I pursued my career successively as a teacher, coach, and Vice-Principal at schools in Rotterdam. In 2018 we went back to Asia, this time as a family of five. Our first stop was China where I became Head of Shanghai Dutch School, offering an integrated Dutch language and culture curriculum for students. After this adventure, we stayed in Asia, first in Malaysia and finally Singapore, where I became Dutch Secondary teacher at an international school.We moved back home last August, and I am looking forward to contributing to and being part of the ambitious and dynamic team at ISU. I’m passionate about teaching, challenging and motivating students to improve their Dutch language skills!'.
Jerry Rayner (Miss Rayner to the students!), UK: 'I teach English Language and Literature in the MYP. I am originally from the east coast of the UK but have lived in Leiden since 2016. I have been teaching for over 20 years and am lucky enough to have worked in a variety of school environments. In my free time, I can be found in cafés along the canals in Leiden with my knitting'.
Kyprianos Chrysafinis; Cyprus: 'Since last May, I have been a Physics teacher for grades 10, 11, and 12. After acquiring my BSc in Physics, I came to the Netherlands to pursue an MSc in Science Education and Communication at Utrecht University. In my free time, I enjoy playing tennis, swimming, immersing myself in nature, and playing board games'.
Sarah den Heijer; UK: I teach English Language Acquisition in secondary. My passion has always been to teach and as I enter my third year studying English teacher education at the HU, I am enjoying being part of the ISU community. I am passionate about students using their home languages to develop their English skills and to make them feel welcome in my classroom. I am actively involved in the development of multilingualism within the school and organise lunchtime language cafes for the students to curiously explore their cultures and languages. I am originally from Newcastle upon Tyne in the North East of England, but now live in Utrecht with my Dutch husband and 3 girls aged 3, 5 and 7. In my spare time, I enjoy cycling with the family and escaping to the Frisian island of Ameland'.